Vigilantes Wanted
by thelightsandbuzz
Summary: The government has outlawed superheroes and enforced a neutralizing field around the country. With their remaining resources, a team of superheroes scattered across the country must work together to overthrow the dictatorship and return to their old lives. Will, Warren, and the Sky High gang in their older years plus some OCs. Take a look and hope you enjoy!
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

* * *

When the United States elected a new President in the beginning of the year 2015, the superhero community experienced significant changes in their partnership with the government. The President first sanctioned new laws that limited superhero activities across the nation. That, of course, was not the end of it, and as months passed, everyone saw President Johnson's new side. He was a man who evidently hated superheroes, and he openly voiced this hatred through his actions. The International Association of Superheroes (IAS), and other superhero teams such as the Justice League, acted fast to protest the government's new laws. However, despite the support from various members of the senate and state governments, the President's orders took precedence. In just a few months, all superhero organizations were labelled as anti-government; superheroes became vigilantes, and all superhero work across the nation was deemed illegal.

The Anti-Vigilante law did not stop the superheroes from continuing their work to help people. To keep their families safe however, many superheroes sent their non-active loved ones out of the country, while they stayed in their cities to help the resistance. Many families moved up north to Canada, and a number moved to other continents. The superhero communities around the world had been most generous and understanding, and it made the transition easier for the refugees.

Since the government had always been privy to their locations, all superhero centres and team headquarters within the U.S. were abandoned. The active heroes formed underground bases as part of the resistance, and teams partnered up with each other to share resources. The resistance started strong, but soon their strength dwindled as public appreciation for supers declined, and law enforcers started to use excessive force. In the months following the creation of the Anti-Vigilante law, many supers around the country have been jailed, and worse, have disappeared.

To stop the last of the resistance, President Johnson started his plan to build a neutralizing field around his country. Any super within this field's boundaries would be unable to utilize their powers. With no super powers to deal with, he wouldn't have to worry about someone using their super strength or any other power to fight his government.

The neutralizing field first appeared within the borders of the eastern United States, which caught all the superheroes offhand. The appearance of the field also caused uproar with the citizens, not because of its neutralizing effect, but because it became clear that there was also a shield. No one was able to leave or enter the invisible wall. Its impermeability became a primary concern for all the citizens, and soon public support for the President dwindled.

Riots and rallies occurred, which all called for the expulsion of the President for violating the U.S. Charter and the Universal Human Rights. As a response to the chaos, the President declared Marshall Law. All travel in and out of the shielded borders was impossible, and the army was tasked with keeping the citizens in order, no matter what force was needed. The remaining citizens in the western United States scrambled to leave before the shield was expanded to cover cross country. But it was only a matter of time before the President succeeded in enveloping his country in a giant dome.

By the second week of July, every citizen in America was trapped inside an invisible dome. The supers were powerless, and the democratic government was no more.

* * *

**To be Continued**


	2. Maxville

**Maxville, East Coast**  
**July 8, 2015**

* * *

"I don't want to leave you here Will," Layla said sadly as tears threatened to fall from her eyes. She looked at her husband Will, who had their sleeping 2-year-old son Cameron in his arms.

Will kissed his son on the temple before he handed him to Layla, "It isn't safe here Layla, you must. It's only temporary, until things get better."

Layla held their son close as she walked alongside Will inside the Maxville Hero Centre. The place was in chaos as supers and their families flooded the transportation floor. The teleporters were all in use as superhero families rushed to get away from the country. Will, Layla, and Cameron walked past the transportation area and up towards the floor where Will and Layla's offices were.

"Will! Layla!" Jetstream exclaimed as she rushed towards her family alongside The Commander. She hugged her son, daughter-in-law, and grandson tightly.

The Stronghold family had been through a lot in the past few months. It started with the dwindled public support for supers due to the Anti-Vigilante Law, and it culminated when The Commander and The Enforcer, Will's alter ego, were imprisoned a week ago. They were broken out of prison by Flare, who was one of their closest friends. Flare had help from his superhero team called The Elements, and after a few days of reconnaissance and a well-planned prison break, they managed to free a few innocent supers.

"Warren and the others are coming soon, they just had to help the I.T. department with the Centre's cloaking device," The Commander said as he took his grandson and held him close.

The whole Centre was going to be closed by the end of the day, and cloaked by a shielding system. Nevertheless, because its location was known by the government, they knew it was only a matter of time before the safety of the supers were compromised. The newly formed government Task Force was now distributed across Maxville, and were quickly rounding up suspected meta-humans in the city.

The Stronghold family turned as they heard footsteps at the entrance. They saw four supers walk towards them. They were Flare, Maelstrom, Metalson, and Vraine - Fire, Water, Earth, and the hero who could control all elements. Their team The Elements was one of the most powerful superhero team that existed, despite their very low numbers. They worked in alliance with other superhero teams around the globe, and due to the crisis in the U.S., they have had to concentrate their efforts to help the resistance.

The four greeted the family with warm hugs. They soon prepared items that they would be taking with them after the Centre's closing.

"We've managed to relocate Sky High over the Atlantic, close to the Elements Headquarters," Flare informed the Strongholds, referring to their former floating school and his team's headquarters, also a floating fortress in the sky. "There are some supers staying in Sky High. It still has a functioning communication system that can be used to help those in the mainland. Ethan and Gabriela are leading the information team at the Elements headquarters nearby. Steve, Josie, contact them if you need to. We've also added more teleporters there if they're needed."

"How about the hero centre in Niagara Falls?" asked Layla; she was to stay in the region above the State of New York along with her parents.

"They've been set up in the same configuration as Sky High," answered Vraine as she hugged Cameron goodbye and gave him back to Layla.

"Jetstream and The Commander will be rotating there and Sky High to lead the resistance. And you Layla will help run the resistance liaison at the hero centre, I know you will be restless if you don't work."

"Too right you are," Layla smiled a bit and placed a hand on Will's arm as he started to protest with a look. "My parents are in the safe house already, they'll be able to take care of Cam when we're not there."

The Commander looked at his watch, "We better head out, the Centre will be closing soon."

His wife nodded and the group walked towards the teleporter beside the common room. Layla picked up a few belongings from her office and joined the others. The rest of their things had already been transported to their new home days before.

"Will, are you sure you want to stay here? Who knows what will happen in the next few days?" Jetstream asked her son as she hugged him.

Will took her hands and squeezed them reassuringly, "I'll be fine Mom, I just need to make sure the Centre is safe before everyone leaves. Most important is that I make sure the troopers are treating the residents well," Will responded. "The resistance headquarters is well protected for now, I'll be just fine."

Soon The Commander and Jetstream said their parting words to the five people who were to stay behind. They stepped onto the platform and vanished in a flash of blue light, and appeared miles away atop a floating school in the sky.

It was Layla and Cameron's turn to leave. Will hugged his family tightly and kissed Layla deeply before he let them go.

Layla turned to the other heroes, "I'll be waiting to hear from all of you. Mandy, when you see Zack and Magenta in L.A., tell them to contact me straightaway," Maelstrom nodded as she hugged her goodbye. "Vee, Tom, I promise I'll set you up a nice engagement party after all of this," the couple laughed as they literally got engaged the day the President enacted the Anti-Vigilante Law a month ago.

"Warren, when you see Mia in Washington, tell her thanks for arranging my post in Niagara," Layla finished with Warren, referring to one of her closest friends Mia, who was Warren's wife.

"Will do, take care of yourself Layla, I'll see you soon hopefully," Warren replied as he hugged her. He gave his godson Cameron a quick kiss on the head, and then stepped back as Layla and Cam teleported away.

The five heroes looked at each other and then started to walk back towards the elevator. The evacuation was finished, and as they descended, they looked out the glass elevator walls to see the empty and unlit floors. They stopped at the lobby, where Maelstrom and the Enforcer quickly entered the security codes for the building.

It was time for all of them to go their separate ways.

"I'll head out to meet the guys underground," Will started as he changed back to his civilian attire. "A couple of Max Force agents are bringing in surveillance tech and weapons in a few hours. I'll let you all know how it goes later."

Vraine and Metalson nodded, "Our sources have mentioned that President Johnson is getting ready for something, the number of troopers have been doubled and they're definitely training," Vraine informed the group. "I have a feeling that it's going to be an attack against all of us, he needs us neutralized if he's to have complete control. If he equips his army with neutralizing weapons, we move to plan B."

Plan B was to utilize all of their assets to hijack the government's information systems, and continue their attempt to dethrone the President. The heroes nodded at Vraine, knowing well that if they were met with neutralizing weapons, they would have to rely mostly on their espionage skills and technology in order to form their next moves.

Vraine and Metalson were going to Arizona, where a secret government facility in the Grand Canyon was found by trusted sources. They were to meet with a small resistance alliance formed by the disbanded IAS and a local Arizona superhero agency.

Maelstrom was headed to Los Angeles, where she was to meet high level information experts. These experts included their close friends Zach and Magenta, who had been part of the resistance as information team leaders since the Anti-Vigilante Law was passed. They were in charge of infiltrating the government's intelligence system, and dispatching remaining supers to problem areas.

"We better go," Metalson said as the team hugged each other goodbye. He took hold of his fiancé Vraine's hand and the two were teleported away to Arizona. Maelstrom next touched a button on a portable teleporter strapped on her wrist and then disappeared.

Flare turned to his best friend, "Take care of yourself Will, and let me know quickly if it gets worse here. Mia and I are not that far away."

Will nodded, "You too, take care of Mia and be safe, you'll be in the middle of chaos down in the Capital."

Warren was headed to Washington where his wife Mia was working as a liaison between the superhero community and a newly formed resistance organization compiled of former politicians, United Nations agents, and multinational business owners.

"We'll do our best," Flare replied. "Goodbye Will, good luck."

Will waved shortly and watched his friend enter the coordinates on his portable teleporter. He soon vanished from sight. Will then walked out of the doors, and heard a swooshing sound behind him as the doors to Maxville Hero Centre were secured shut.

It was time to meet with his fellow vigilantes and protect his city from the government threat that loomed around them.

**TBC**

* * *

Character List:

Warren Peace/Flare  
Will Stronghold/ The Enforcer  
Layla Williams-Stronghold/Ivy  
Magenta Tyler-Brawn/ Shifter  
Zach Brawn/ Highlighter  
Ethan Reynolds/ Meltdown  
(OC) Amelia (Mia) Landall-Peace/ Lady Force  
(OC) Gabriela Foster-Reynolds/ The Code  
(OC) Veronica Simpson/ Vraine  
(OC) Tom Landon/ Metalson  
(OC) Mandy Soleil/ Maelstrom

* * *

_Author's Note:_

_Hello there! This story is part of a storyverse that I started with the story "The Mixed Tape". That story was mainly about Warren and Mia, and how their relationship began. There's no need to read that one in order to understand this story but hey, it would be totally awesome if you take a look at that one too. There are a couple of other stories in this storyverse and you can find those on my profile._

_As you've gathered from the prologue and summary, this story is going to be an adventure/romance/friendship fic. It will be different from many stories on the Sky High archives since I wanted to write a story that diverges away from the high school setting. I've already written the high school-centred story with "The Mixed Tape", so I wanted to move beyond that and write about what the Sky High gang might be up to when they're much older. As such, because they are older (they're all in their mid-20s), I've introduced quite a bit of original characters because I wanted to show how the gang has matured, and how they work professionally with other superheroes._

_So I hope you enjoyed the introduction to this story, and stay tuned for the next chapter! To those of you who have read "The Mixed Tape", you'll get a sort-of sequel in the next chapter since it will focus mainly on Warren and Mia._

_Reviews are very welcome! You won't need an account to review since I'm allowing anonymous reviews in order to keep the lines of communication open. Any questions, ideas, and other comments will be happily read and/or answered. Thanks everyone, and don't worry, my next Author's Notes won't be as long as this._


	3. Washington DC, Part 1

**Washington DC, Part 1**

**July 12, 2015**

* * *

A pro-vigilante rally was being held at a park near the U.S. Capitol. Hundreds of superhero supporters held up signs condemning the government for their recent actions, and calling an end to the hunt for the so-called vigilantes. The group first attracted the attention of the local police, who immediately contacted the Task Force. The Task Force was a special law enforcement unit created at the onset of the Anti-Vigilante law. Its members were military soldiers and other government agents who were well trained, and quite biased against vigilantes.

The Task Force squad that were dubbed "troopers" by the public attempted to break up the rally just half an hour after they started. The citizens fought to keep their places even as the troopers took out their riot gear. When the squad started to fire their guns to the sky to scare the people away, a few superheroes appeared to help the citizens get away safely from the scene.

Three blocks away from the park where the rally was being held, Warren and his wife Mia sat in a café. They had just finished a meeting with UN agents who needed to report to international communities concerned with the situation in the U.S. The meeting occurred in a secure place to protect both parties, and at the end, the UN agents boarded a private jet to leave the country untraced.

Mia's phone rang as Warren looked around the patio, "Hello?" she answered, nodding at Warren, who knew instantly that something bad had happened. The two got up and promptly left the café. "We're about a couple of blocks away. Sure. Thanks Maj."

Mia turned to Warren and slipped her arm through his' casually. She informed him quietly, "That pro-V rally at the park just turned ugly. Maj noticed the dispatch from the local police station, and saw that the Task Force troopers were called in as well."

"Johnson's going to enforce Marshall Law at this rate," Warren replied as the two walked briskly towards the park where the rally was being held. More and more citizen rallies have appeared in the past few weeks, and it was only a matter of time before the President exercised strict control of the country.

Suddenly, they heard sirens approaching their street. Warren quickly took hold of Mia's hand, and walked at a much slower pace to avoid suspicion. As far as anyone on the street might deduce, they were just a couple out for a morning stroll.

"Looks like the riot police," Mia noted with her eyes narrowed at the police cars and black armoured SUVs that quickly passed by.

The two were about a block away from the park when they heard gunshots fired nearby. Seconds after, a bomb exploded in a firehouse about a hundred meters from where Warren and Mia were. The force of the blast sent flying glass and concrete in the near vicinity, and screams littered the area as people scrambled to get away. On instinct, Warren held Mia close to him to protect her from the flying debris. They got up moments after the blast, and rushed to a side alley to change into their costumes.

Flare and Lady Force ran down the street to help the people injured by the blast. Flare extinguished the remaining flames in the firehouse, as Lady Force extracted people pinned on the street by pieces of debris. Both searched inside the firehouse but found it empty. They soon heard the sirens of ambulances closing in.

"We have to go, they'll arrest us if we stay," Flare placed a hand on LF's shoulder, and she stood up after making sure the woman she was helping was alright.

"Ok, we have to get to the park," she ran alongside Flare. "This bomb was planned, there was no one inside so it's either a warning or a distraction."

"I see someone on the air, it seems like the local team," Flare noted as the park came within their line of vision. They saw three superheroes in the middle of the park with the citizens.

"Look out!" Flare exclaimed as a trooper opened fire at the two. LF instantly made a force field around them as they ran forward. With a swift drop kick by Flare, the trooper was knocked out.

The two were separated as they protected the citizens from the surprisingly violent troopers. In previous situations, the troopers had used tranquilizing weapons to capture any superheroes or villains. Now however, it was evident that they were using only live ammunition. They attacked the superheroes around them with lethal force, and used excessive means to get the citizens out of the way.

LF ushered two limping people out of the park with a force field around them. When they reached the park's boundaries, she left them with a few paramedics who quickly worked on their injuries. As she judged the friendly and sincere way the paramedics looked at her, LF knew that she wouldn't have to worry about them calling the troopers.

Flare, meanwhile, helped a fellow super who took a bullet to the leg. He half-carried him away from the oncoming line of troopers from the north side. Flames appeared before that squad, and they soon equipped themselves with water hoses and fire extinguishers to get through.

The three superheroes who came to the park before Flare and LF were younger IAS members. They assembled behind the defensive line of fire and all looked worse for wear.

"You all have to get out of here," Flare commanded. "Most of the citizens have been taken care of."

The super called Day Hawk, who was shot in the leg, held out his portable teleporter, "OK, let's go then, are you coming Flare? And what about the boss?" He asked, referring to LF, who was their national operations director at the IAS.

Flare shook his head, "Go and stay hidden for now, they've seen your faces so they'll be on the hunt," Flare responded as he looked around. "LF and I will leave after you."

"The Task Force captured two supervillains when we got here, I'm not sure but one of them looked like he was gone," Day Hawk informed him and Flare's face darkened.

"I'll have it checked later, go now, all of you."

Flare watched as the three heroes disappeared, and turned to help a few more citizens who were rushing out of the park. The defensive line of fire was slowly being extinguished by the Task Force. As heavy smoke filled the air, Flare heard the gunshots resume. A number of troopers made their way towards him, and he managed to melt their weapons by overheating the guns' internal power charges. They threw the useless weapons aside and surrounded him. Arms ablaze, he took a defensive stance as the troopers attacked.

LF ran towards the area covered with heavy smoke, and disarmed troopers she met on the way. She soon saw Flare in physical combat with three troopers and ran towards him. All citizens were finally out of the area, and that meant the two supers had to get out of there quickly.

As soon as she saw the remaining troopers with Flare drop, she yelled out, "Flare! Time to go!"

Flare wiped the blood off the side of his mouth and quickly ran towards LF. Just before the two reached each other, another bomb blast from nearby blew them off their feet. The two landed harshly on the grass a few feet away. There was no time to stay put however, as two troopers approached them. Flare rushed to LF and helped her up as he threw a fireball at their attackers.

The fireball, to their surprise, disappeared in midair and never quite reached the target. Flare tried to throw another fireball but none appeared on his hands. LF looked at him in horror as she too tried to produce an energy disk, to no avail. They soon felt it: the energy in their bodies reserved for superpowers quickly disappeared. They were neutralized.

As the two attackers neared them, the heroes stepped up for physical combat. The troopers were soon disarmed and knocked out.

"We won't be able to fight off those bullets, it's time to change," LF said to her partner as they noticed more troopers with weapons at hand head their way.

The two quickly ran towards the cover of the trees at the east side of the park. The smoke around the central part of the park remained, which greatly aided them in their escape.

** TBC **


	4. Washington DC, Part 2

**Washington DC, Part 2  
July 12, 2015**

* * *

Mia and Warren had no powers, and they were on the run from a number of troopers who managed to follow them as they escaped from the park. After much running and fighting, the two were able to beat their adversaries in the deeper part of the woods. They then decided to stay in the cover of the woods until it was dark enough to sneak back into the city.

While in there, Warren and Mia contacted their friends in L.A. to find out what had happened. They learned that they had been caught in the middle of a neutralizing field across the eastern part of the country. Their information team led by Magenta and Zach was still studying the neutralizing field, so none of them knew completely what was happening. So far, they were told that as a result of the neutralizing field, dozens of superheroes and some supervillains were arrested in the east as they were caught unawares and overpowered by the Task Force. Worse, it was confirmed that two supervillains had been killed, one of them being the supervillain from the park riot. One superhero was also in life threatening condition in a New York hospital after being struck down by the Task Force for interference.

As for their next step, Mia and Warren were told that a large banquet for important business people was being held at the White House the next day. It was apparently set up by the administration in order to gain the support of multinational corporations, and assure them that no money would be lost from the recent changes in the country. Because of this, Warren and Mia knew instantly that that was a party they had to crash.

To do this mission, they needed the right gear. So they left the woods when it was safe, and headed to the business and fashion district of the city. When Warren and Mia reached the edge of the woods, the two quickly headed to a familiar street that was fortunately not too far away. They managed to reach the place without running into any police, or worse, the Task Force.

The couple arrived at a storefront that was still open, even though it was 9:30 at night. They walked up the steps towards the blue glass double doors, but were then met by a guard who stepped swiftly in front of them. Before the guard could speak, Warren's phone rang and he turned away to answer it quietly. Mia looked at the guard inquisitively.

"I'm sorry miss, but I can't let you in the store, we, umm...have a strict dress-code policy," the guard said, looking over Mia's and Warren's forms. They were wearing clothes smudged with ashes and ripped in places, along with dirty shoes on their feet. Also not to mention the dried blood scattered on their clothes and skin, which thankfully looked like mud so it didn't arouse too much suspicion.

It was a high end couture clothing store, and they definitely had a dress code. But the couple had no time nor the resources at that moment to change into better clothes.

Mia rolled her eyes at the guard exasperatedly, "And why do you suppose we're here? To window shop?" she asked tiredly and the guard stammered out,

"I'm sorry, I have to follow my orders," he said as he again looked at her and at Warren from head to toe. Warren was still on his cell-phone speaking to Zach from the Information Centre.

Warren looked at Mia carefully, signaling her not to lose her temper at the guy. Mia sighed, he was right. They needed help from a friend inside and fighting with a guard was no help.

"Look, can you please call the store owner? Tell her we need to speak with her, thanks," she asked delicately.

The guard nodded, and left the two waiting at the door. Warren got off the phone and looked wearily at his wife.

"No progress on the front. Worse, they just found out that not only is it a neutralizing field, but its enclosed by an impermeable shield. The eastern region is completely sealed off, right to the nearest centimeter of the political map's border lines," Warren said in hushed tones as Mia's eyes widened.

"Under the dome," she breathed out. "No one comes in or out. No superpowers. Give it a couple of more days and he'll have the whole country covered," Mia finished angrily, Warren took her hand to comfort her a bit, but he too, was fuming at the news.

Both waited impatiently for the guard to come back with Sophia, the store owner and fashion designer. She was also one of the few designers who design superhero costumes, with clientele ranging from heroes of the Justice League and the IAS. She was the one who happened to create both Flare's and Lady Force's costumes as well as their teammates.

Warren moved forward and looked at his reflection on the doors. He scratched at the slight stubble on his face and touched the dried blood covering a cut on his lips.

"We have to get cleaned up quickly," he stated and breathed a sigh of relief along with Mia when they saw Sophia walking briskly towards the door.

"Mia! Warren!" Sophia rushed to them and pulled them inside quickly. "Sorry about this, come in, come in."

The two entered the large store and the guard from before apologized to them. Mia reassured him that it was perfectly understandable, and shook his hand cordially.

"Gary, please tell Claire to start closing up the store," Sophia instructed and the guard nodded.

Sophia ushered the two towards a silver staircase that led to a large office on the second floor. She locked the door behind her and gave both of them a hug.

"You two look like hell," she simply stated, looking at their forms.

Mia grinned slightly, "It could have been worse."

"You were on the news for the better part of the afternoon, lots of wanted vigilante ads, the usual," Sophia said as she walked around the room, grabbing towels and a first aid kit.

"Have you heard from anyone else?" Warren asked as he gratefully took the first aid kit. He quickly opened it and rummaged around for sanitizing cloths, ointment, and steri-strips.

"Just Sean," she answered, talking about her fiancée, who was an old friend of Mia's. "He was supposed to come back from the Watchtower a few hours ago, but that's not going happen now with this damn shield. Oh my god Mia," she quickly added as she saw Mia lift her torn shirt up to reveal a nasty wound on the side of her stomach.

Warren immediately worked on her wound with the first aid supplies he got, "It's just a bullet graze, nothing too deep," Mia reassured her friend.

The three soon talked about what they needed to keep up appearances for the next day. Mia and Warren needed formal attire and Sophia happily went down to search for the things they needed. While Sophia picked out clothes for them, Warren and Mia washed up in the bathroom. They wiped off the blood and dirt on their exposed skin, and when they finished they saw Sophia coming up the stairs.

"Okay, I got some clothes for you to wear now. You were lucky no one questioned you for your attire getting here, but let's try to avoid that when you go back home," Sophia said as she carried two large paper bags.

She pulled out a simple black dress, trench coat and red pumps for Mia, who went to the changing room behind wooden dividers to pull them on. Sophia handed Warren a crisp white shirt, black trousers, and black shoes. Sophia of course knew their sizes well, having been their designer for many years.

When Warren and Mia finished changing, Sophia took out more boxes of clothes intended for the White House banquet.

"Here you are Mia," Sophia said as she pulled out a knee-length red dress with a thin diamond belt. It was paired with 4-inch high nude coloured pumps. "I know how you like your formal business attires, and also Warren's favourite colour."

Mia laughed as she examined the garment and placed it back in the box. There was no need to try it on since she knew it would fit well anyway. Warren meanwhile, took the tuxedo and shoes from Sophia with his thanks.

"Thanks so much for helping Sophia, you're an angel," Warren said and Sophia returned his smile.

"I'm always happy to help, you guys know that," she replied. "Just promise me you two will be careful tomorrow, I don't know what to think of you being so near the President," she finished with a nervous look on her face.

Mia took her hands and gave them a reassuring squeeze, "Don't worry, it'll be Mia the C.O.O of a multinational corporation and Warren the highly paid doctor he'll be meeting, not the supers he wants to get rid of."

Sophia sighed, "I guess," she suddenly looked at the time and widened her eyes. "Oh! I forgot to tell you two, there was a curfew set up just this afternoon after the riot near the Capitol. No one's supposed to be out past midnight."

It was 11 o'clock, "We missed that notice. What Johnson comes up with next I don't know," Warren shook his head as he and Mia gathered their things.

"I can drive you both back to your place," Sophia offered as she too gathered her things.

"No don't worry Sophie, we'll call a cab, you live on the other side of the city from our house and I don't want you to miss the stupid curfew," Mia replied.

"Alright, I'll call one now, it'll be faster."

Everyone packed up their things and headed down to the now empty shop. When the taxi came for Mia and Warren, both hugged their friend goodbye.

"Take care Sophie, I'll call you tomorrow," Mia said to Sophia before she walked to her car.

Mia and Warren got on the taxi and rode for about 20 minutes until they reached their condominium building. They paid the driver, who had been talking and complaining about the recent curfew for the most part of their ride. The couple had been very sympathetic, and wished him goodnight after including a large tip in their payment.

Warren carried the two large paper bags and Mia pulled open the door for him. When they entered the lobby, the concierge of the building greeted them.

"Good evening Doctor and Mrs. Peace," he cordially said to the two.

"Hello Graham, how was your day?" Mia smiled up at him.

"Very busy as usual," Graham sighed. "I trust you both have heard of the newly enforced curfew law?"

"Yes, we seem to have made it just in time," Warren noted as he casually looked up at the giant clock behind the information desk; it was a quarter to midnight.

"We have been instructed to let all of our residents know that the building management is required to lockdown the building at midnight," Graham informed them in a rehearsed tone. "We apologize for any inconvenience."

Mia shook her head and gave him a tiny smile, "There's no need to apologize, the building management didn't create the new rules."

"Indeed," Graham returned the smile and continued to speak with a tone of dry humour. "Well I hope you have a pleasant night despite our circumstances under the giant dome."

Warren grinned at his words, "We'll try, goodnight Graham."

Mia waved goodbye as the elevators opened. They went all the way up to the top floor where their penthouse was located.

"I wonder what they would do to people they catch outside after midnight," Mia pondered as she opened their door.

Warren entered after her and placed the bags on an entryway bench, "Most likely an armed escort home."

Mia went straight to their computer and entered a secure connection. She opened a video communication program, and called their close friends and teammates. While she waited for them to answer, Warren heated up some food in the microwave as the two had not eaten since that morning. Food was usually the last thing on their minds when they're caught up in a mission. Warren pulled a computer chair next to Mia and handed her a plate of lasagna they ordered in from a restaurant the previous day.

"Thanks," Mia turned to face Warren as both ate their meal. "How are you feeling?"

"Cold," came Warren's simple reply and Mia smiled sympathetically. She had only seen Warren stripped off his powers once during a trip to the ancient Pyramid of Khufu in Egypt. The inside of the Pyramid neutralized any superpowers, and Warren and his Elements team were caught unawares by a villain who wanted them dead. They won that mission, but the nullifying effects on their powers from the pyramid lingered for a few days when they left.

Mia gingerly placed a hand on Warren's cheek, and indeed he was cool to the touch, "Hmm, I'll have to get used to this. I'll need to find an electric blanket to replace you," she grinned.

Warren laughed in reply, he appreciated Mia's humour at a time like this, "I'll just turn up the thermostat later."

When they finished eating, a beep came up on the computer screen and Mia clicked on the conference call program. The window was split into five video feeds, and Layla's face popped into one of them.

"Mia! Warren! How are you?" Layla exclaimed. She was calling from the hero centre in Niagara Falls, Canada.

Warren smiled at the camera for Layla, "Hey Hippie, we're just fine. How are you and the little guy?"

"We're doing well, Cam's been missing Will a lot," Layla replied. "Will just called and said he would be online in a few minutes."

Will soon entered the conversation and minutes later Veronica and Tom signed on. Next was Ethan and Gabriela, and finally Zach and Magenta.

After their initial greetings with each other, the chaos dwindled a bit and all got down to business.

"First off, the shield," Ethan started. "We've analyzed it from the Elements' satellites and it is a solid force field. There are no weak spots. Wildlife has been trying to get through it and it's like a bird hitting a window. Same with the people trying to break through. The Commander bounced back a few hundred meters when he tried to punch a hole through it this afternoon."

"It's an impressive energy shield," Vee nodded. "Tom and I had a look at it earlier where it stops at the border of Texas. I went under a lake to see if we can go below it but I had to dig even deeper than the lakebed. Nothing. The shield in my opinion extends well below the earth's crust."

"Damn," Will added. "And how did they manage to make the inside a neutralizing zone too? Where could they have gotten that technology?"

Everyone was silent. No one knew, and that meant they had something to add to their mission.

"How are your supplies?" Layla steered the conversation to another direction. "With no powers, you'll need lots of weapons and other equipment."

"We have a good stock here in Maxville, lots of stun guns and rays, as well as a few of those bugs that crash network systems," Will replied.

"Same here, there's plenty at the rebel headquarters," Warren added. "So what have you prepared over there in the west?"

Zach answered, "We've split up our main team, the other half are in Vancouver so we can still have a link to the non-neutralized world when we get stuck here. We're continuing to worm our way into the government's network systems but they've got excellent hackers working for them. Mandy went to Vancouver to help set up, but she's coming back later today to help with the weapons and our cloaking devices."

Warren looked at the screen and asked his remaining Elements team members, "Are you two staying? What did you find so far?"

Tom sighed and spoke in his British accent, "If we're going to find a way to dissolve the neutralizing field we'll have to work from the inside. Even without our powers I'm sure we can manage with the resources we already have. We also located the government facility in the Grand Canyon, and it turns out that it's a large Task Force outpost. If Johnson's amassing a large army inside an impermeable shield, we can't leave the people inside vulnerable."

"Plus," Vee added, looking up after putting her phone aside. "There's a geothermal power plant here that seems to be highly protected by more Task Force troopers that any other place in the region. They definitely need to monopolize the power grid if they want full control. Our task will be to monitor any other places the government might overtake. It might give us a clue to what exactly Johnson is planning."

Magenta typed something on her keyboard and looked up at the screen after, "Good idea, we'll try to find something on the network searches. Mia and Warren might have better luck finding those places though, the business banquet tomorrow will have a bunch of people talking about government intervention in their private companies."

"Sure, we'll see what we can find," Mia replied, stretching her sore arms out and wincing slightly from the pain on her side.

"So that's all we have for now right?" Will asked and all of them nodded. "I have to leave, the rebel headquarters is being relocated tonight."

Soon everyone said their goodbyes to each other, and signed off. The last to sign off were Ethan and Gabriela, and Mia and Warren.

"I've rsvp'd you two for tomorrow," Ethan informed Mia and Warren. "There will be lots of security checks, so be extra careful. Greene Pharmaceuticals is also expecting a statement from you Mia tomorrow after the event, so they know how to proceed with the travel restrictions."

Greene Pharmaceuticals was a large corporation created by Mia's grandfather, Doctor Greene. He is known in the superhero community for his contribution to superhero science, and the general public knows him as a leading scientist in the pharmaceutical world. He's retired now, and his company is being run by Mia's parents, who are both superhero scientists. Mia is a company partner and the Chief Operations Officer. She helps to run the business side of the company with the aid of trusted managers so that she didn't have to clock in so many hours.

Warren, on the other hand, is a trained medical doctor like his mother Sara Peace. He pursued his M.D. after he discovered his healing powers many years ago. He has since worked for Greene Pharmaceuticals for a number of projects, the most noted one being on a Cancer Research and Treatment he did with his fellow teammates Tom and Veronica, who also have healing powers.

The couple were going to be the representatives of a powerful company, which will be useful if they were to gain inside knowledge of the government's agenda in the country.

"I'll be sure to send out the statement Ethan, thanks, tell my folks hello when you they visit you up there later in the afternoon," Mia smiled.

"No problem, we'll talk to you again soon. Goodnight Mia and Warren."

They all said goodnight to each other and when they shut down their computer, Warren leaned on the back of his chair tiredly and stretched his arms.

Mia stood up, "What a day," she sighed. "I'm due for a shower."

She took her hair out of its messy bun and headed to the bathroom. Warren followed her inside and brushed his teeth as Mia got in the shower. Warren heard a slight grunt and he turned to see Mia through the glass doors peeling off the steri-strip on her wound so she could wash it off with water.

"Let me see," Warren said concerned as he walked towards her when she got off the shower. He looked at the wound and scrunched his eyebrows; it was still red and slightly swollen.

"All the adrenaline has worn off, it hurts like a bitch now," Mia winced as Warren grabbed some supplies and reapplied ointment and steri-strips.

"This would have taken a second if I had my powers," Warren muttered, frustrated at their predicament. Mia smiled to reassure him and when he finished with her wound she took his face in her hands and kissed him softly.

She looked at him closely and said in a steady voice, "I'll be fine."

It was Warren's turn to kiss her deeply and when he let her go, Mia slipped on a robe and patted his cheek.

"Be quick, we'll need a good night's sleep to be ready for tomorrow," she commented as Warren took off his clothes and stepped in the shower.

"Don't forget to message the car company," Warren reminded her.

"Oh yes, almost forgot, I'll do it now."

It was almost 2 in the morning when the couple finally got into bed. Yawning, Mia snuggled close to Warren, feeling his unusual cold temperature. Warren kissed her goodnight and her eyes fluttered close.

"Try not to kick Johnson in his nether region later today, no matter how annoying he is," Warren muttered against Mia's head, his eyes closed and mouth upturned into a grin.

Mia's eyes were still closed and she moved her head to its comfortable nook above Warren's shoulder, "Hmm, it was Lady Force that did it last time. I'll try my best later," she finished with humour in her voice as she remembered kicking Johnson in the groin out of sheer annoyance when he was still a congressman years ago.

Warren wrapped an arm around her waist, carefully avoiding the wound on her side, and for the first time in weeks, slept with a small smile on his face. He knew they would do just fine in the afternoon since they won't be seen as vigilantes for once. He only hoped that they could make it through in the coming weeks, and find a way to finally end the war.

**TBC**

* * *

_Thoughts? Don't forget to leave a comment! _


	5. Los Angeles

**Los Angeles**

**July 13, 2015**

* * *

"I got pizza for everyone," Zach called out as he entered the room. There were five people inside preoccupied with their own computer screens and holograms.

"Thanks Zach, I'll grab some in a bit," his wife Magenta replied without looking away from her work table.

Zach plopped down on a couch in front of a large TV screen that had different news feeds from across the country. He ate his pizza as he watched for a few minutes. Magenta soon joined him on the couch and grabbed a slice.

"Let's go out today, I think we need a break from this place," Magenta commented and Zach placed an arm around her.

"Sounds like a good idea, maybe we can finally visit Universal Studios? Just for the afternoon," Zach suggested. He had wanted to go there since they arrived in California but they never had enough free time to do so, for obvious reasons.

Mandy was one of the people in the computers near them and she called out, "You two can spend the rest of the day there if you want, we'll manage here. You guys have been cooped up here for way too long, you're due for a break."

"Thanks Mandy," Magenta turned to her. "I don't know though, it feels weird to not do work when everyone is in constant danger."

"I don't think we'll be too busy today," Zach shrugged. "Everyone else is still doing their research."

He was referring to their other teammates, who were all in their own missions doing some reconnaissance.

"Alright, we'll leave in a bit," Magenta stood up and started to close her active computer screens.

Their other co-workers reassured them that they need not worry while they were out. Zach took hold of Magenta's hand and practically skipped out of their headquarters. Magenta grinned at his enthusiasm and followed him to their car. It was a half hour ride to Universal Studios and for the rest of the afternoon, the couple finally had some fun. It was a refreshing break from their usual rebel office environment, and for once they didn't have to worry about being wanted vigilantes.

* * *

"What!" Zach exclaimed a few hours later as he answered a call from Mandy. He was walking alongside Magenta inside a haunted house in the theme park. "OK, I'll tell her, we'll be there soon."

Zach quietly pulled Magenta to the side to let the people behind them pass. When it was clear, he said, "We have to go, code red. So much for our day off," he finished with a slight pout.

Magenta nodded and the two made their way out of the haunted house swiftly. There was no time to drive back, so the two decided to leave the car and took a portable teleporter instead. Within minutes the two were running towards a hidden entrance to their headquarters.

When they reached the main floor they found chaos as everyone packed up materials for immediate evacuation. When Mandy called Zach, it was to inform the couple that she had intercepted a Task Force transmission about a raid in Los Angeles. Upon further study, she had found that the order was to send out troops to their exact location within the hour. With their cloaking device however, it meant that they had a few hours of protection, depending on how good the Task Force was at overriding defence systems.

After packing up their equipment and teleporting them with some of the rebels who went ahead to their new site, Zach, Magenta, and Mandy stayed behind to ensure everyone was able to evacuate safely. Soon however, their security monitors alerted them of activity in the entrance of their building.

"They're here," Magenta said as her eyes scanned the security video feeds. "Gill and Andrea are still at Sector 2, the troopers will be there in a few minutes."

The headquarters had three main sectors, and they were in Sector 1. The troopers have already accessed Sector 3, and there was little time left before they overtake the whole headquarters.

"I'll get them out," Mandy announced as she quick changed to her dark and light blue costume and ran out the doors.

Seconds later Magenta and Zach saw her in the video feeds as she helped load up weapons with the other two supers in Sector 2. Gill and Andrea carried the two large boxes and were about to step on the teleporter platforms when shots were fired at them. Troopers flooded the floor and Mandy quickly sent out ice shards to disarm the first line of enemies. She ushered the supers to teleport quickly and when they disappeared, Mandy rushed back towards the security doors to Sector 1, all the while dousing the troopers with water and subsequently freezing them.

"They'll be breaking down that door soon," Mandy quickly said, looking at Zach and Magenta, who were both typing something in front of the command centre.

"We just need to fully erase our data and shut down the network system so their hackers won't get anything from us," Zach replied as he and Magenta quickly typed commands on the computers. "It'll take just a couple of minutes to complete."

The armoured doors opened with a large blast that sent broken metal everywhere. The three supers took a defensive stance quickly. Zach and Magenta whipped out stun rays and started firing at troopers. Mandy created water creatures that attacked troopers with the force of small tsunamis. One of Mandy's water creatures was a large python who snaked its way around one of the troopers and reeled him towards her. Zach and Magenta were both in physical combat with a number of troopers, and Mandy continued to blast water onto oncoming troopers then swiftly froze them on the spot.

The computers behind the heroes soon shut down and Magenta quickly yelled out, "It's done! Let's go!"

Zach and Magenta quickly vanished after pressing a button on their teleporters. Mandy quickly followed, only after she pulled the knocked out trooper beside her and teleported out of the place with him.

* * *

"He's waking," Zach called out to his teammates. They had the captured trooper inside a small interrogation room so they might attempt to extract some information from him.

Magenta and Mandy entered the room after Zach, and sat down in front of the trooper across a large metal table.

The trooper slowly raised his head and blinked rapidly to adjust to the lights. He looked at the three superheroes in front of him and tried to struggle free from his handcuffs, to no avail.

"Relax Agent Donner," Magenta started as she held up a hand. They had taken all of his personal items, including his identification and electronic devices. "No one will hurt you here, we just want to ask you some questions."

Donner laughed dryly and sneered at his interrogators, "You really think I would tell you vigilantes anything? I'm a Task Force Captain and CIA agent."

Zach gave him a cold stare, "Yes, we are well aware of your position, which is why we're keeping you here instead of a special prison far away," he finished, referring to a new prison the IAS created in the Sub Saharan desert for captured Task Force agents.

"You'll have to kill me first before you get answers," Donner spat out at them, hatred in his eyes.

Mandy stood up and looked at him calmly, "That won't be necessary. We have other ways of coaxing the truth out of people."

Mandy opened the door and in came a beautiful superhero with long black hair, a golden tiara, a red tube top covered by a gold armoured breast plate, blue leggings, red boots, and a golden lasso around her waist.

Donner's eyes widened slightly when he realized who was in front of him.

"I assume you know our guest?" Mandy asked.

Donner was quiet as he glared at his new interrogator, who walked up to him calmly.

Wonder Woman stopped beside him and gave him a hard stare, "Shall we begin?"

The relocation site for the rebel headquarters was a small Justice League outpost near San Diego. Wonder Woman had been inside to help the newcomers, and she had offered her services when told that they needed to question a trooper.

The trooper only struggled as Wonder Woman expertly tied her golden lasso of truth around him. She looked at the three supers across the table and nodded her head.

Magenta started the questions, "How did your team find our location?"

Donner struggled against the lasso for a moment before his eyes focused, and he said in a clear voice, "One of our hackers traced a network signal that was being bounced back on over a hundred different IP addresses, he managed to follow the signal's original trace to a small movie filming lot. When we checked it out, we found out that no one has filmed anything on it for months, no records. But when we scanned the area with our infrared satellites we saw lots of movements inside. Our hackers noticed the cloaking devices and we knew we hit the jackpot."

Magenta narrowed her eyes and took note of his answer, she was already planning a more advanced defensive strategy in her head. Zach, meanwhile, held Donner's communicator in his hands.

"There are several coded messages in this communicator," Zach slid the communicator towards him and Wonder Woman placed it in his hands. "I want you to decode them."

Donner did as he was told, and Zach plugged in a small bug in the device so that their team could study it outside in the computer labs.

Mandy had her arms crossed as she continued to stare at the man coldly, "What were you planning to do with the supers you could have captured back in the headquarters?"

"Bring them back to the Arizona Task Force outpost as prisoners of war."

Mandy sat up straighter as she remembered that was the outpost her teammates Veronica and Tom had discovered the day before.

"What's so special about this outpost?" she pressed on.

Donner shrugged, "That's just where one of the bigger prisons and training centres are, I've only been there once to bring in supers."

Magenta glanced sideways at her teammates and continued, "You're a Task Force captain so you must know where you're leading your troops next."

"After the raid, we are expected to be in Washington state to meet with the local Task Force team there."

"What are you supposed to do in Washington state?"

"We would combine teams and protect the Nuclear Power Plant on the outskirts of Olympia city."

Zach widened his eyes, "Why the power plant?"

"We were told that we needed to protect the power grid once the President declares Marshall Law tomorrow."

The four supers in the room looked at each other, and silently confirmed that they were done with the interrogation. Wonder Woman unwound the lasso from the trooper, and escorted him back to a prison cell with the others.

"Thanks for that Diana," Mandy said as they walked her to the transportation room.

"It was the least I could do, I'm sorry I have to leave like this, but I must go to the east and see what I can do to help with the shield," Wonder Woman replied as she pushed some buttons on the teleporter. "I'm sure you all will be wonderful in running this place, and if the shield does appear here, you will still have a direct link to the Watchtower, not to mention all of the weapons at your disposal."

Magenta, Mandy, and Zach said their goodbyes and watched as Wonder Woman vanished in a flash of blue light. Magenta quickly got on one of the computers and checked over the findings from the trooper's communicator.

"Here it is, the Nuclear Plant briefings," she started while Zach and Mandy looked over her shoulder.

"Something is up with all of this power grid monopolies by the federal government," Zach muttered.

"Too right," Magenta agreed and pulled up more files on the computer. "It's time to dig deeper."

Zach plopped down into another computer and got to work. Meanwhile, Mandy headed to the operations floor to check news from around the globe. In particular, she wanted to check up on her two best friends in Washington DC. The White House event finished a few hours ago and Mandy wanted to see what the media coverage had been like. It was nighttime there now, and she was able to watch the local Washington DC evening news.

The two indeed made the news. Mandy first watched as Doctor Warren Peace answered a few questions from news reporters in his crisp tuxedo. Next was Mia, who looked polished and professional in a beautiful red dress, and with a calm face as she issued a statement on behalf of her company. A stranger looking at the two might not see anything unusual in their expressions, but as one of their closest friends, Mandy knew instantly that Warren and Mia had something good to share with the team.

**TBC**

* * *

_Thoughts? _


	6. Elements Headquarters

**Elements Headquarters **  
**July 14, 2015**

* * *

"Okay, okay, one at a time!" Layla shouted as she tried to get everyone's attention. They were all in a video conference, and each party had been trying to relay new intel to each other as quickly as they could.

Will put a hand up and everyone turned to him, "Layla's right, from what I'm hearing, this is all about a bunch of power plants across the country being controlled by the government. Why don't we start over there in the West Coast? Maj, Zach, and Mandy?"

Magenta started, "The trooper we interrogated said that a large unit was being sent to the Olympia power plant for security. We were able to access some classified information, and found that the plant has been receiving government funding in covert transactions in order to increase production. They have a continuous surplus of energy, but we haven't been able to find out what they've been doing with that surplus."

When Magenta finished, Layla looked at Vee and Tom, who were inside an IAS outpost in Arizona. She had previously heard them talk about power grids.

"Vee and Tom?" Layla prompted them to speak next.

Vee stood up and grabbed a large transparent screen. She held up the screen to her camera so the others could see it clearly. When she turned it on, it showed a network of power lines across a map of the East Coast.

"I've been accessing our satellites with Ethan and Gabby's help there in the Headquarters. This was the projection of the East Coast power grid the day the dome shield appeared," Vee pointed to two spots, one in New York, and the other in Florida. The map showed interconnected yellow lines, but the lines near those two spots were coloured red. "The red represents a vast amount of electricity being sent out from their original sources- a hydro plant in New York and a nuclear plant in Florida. The output was so large that it should have overloaded the systems, but it didn't. The force field dome and neutralizers appeared just after this overload, which suggests that these plants could have powered them."

"Mia, Warren, you mentioned meeting the owner of the Florida plant at the White House?" Tom asked the couple who were inside their house in DC.

"Yes, it makes more sense now," Warren pondered. "The owner, Flynn, was complaining that the government had insisted his plant to increase production. They convinced him that there was a large demand from the state's power grid so he had to comply. After that, he has had to deal with government agents hanging around his plant."

Mia stepped in, "They needed that surplus of energy to power either the dome shield or the neutralizers, maybe both. That's what they're doing now in the West Coast from what you've found," she directed her gaze to Maj, Zach, and Mandy, who nodded at her speculation.

Layla, who was in the Elements Headquarters with Ethan and Gabby, suddenly saw an alert in one of her monitors. Clicking on the notification, she saw that it was a similar satellite image of a power grid, only it was focused on the map of the West Coast.

"The satellites are picking up on another power grid overload over there in the West," Layla quickly informed the others.

Gabby rushed to one of the larger screens nearby and was able to zoom in on the red zones, "There it is, the red is concentrated exactly in Washington state. The other is in...Arizona."

"Surprise, surprise," Vee muttered sarcastically from her position.

Not a minute later, an alarm blared from Vee and Tom's end, followed by another alarm from where Magenta, Zach, and Mandy are.

"There's the shield," sighed Mandy.

Zach spoke up, "Four power plants near the four corners of the country. It's clear what we have to do now- we need to disable the energy supply."

"It won't be as simple as just turning off the power exactly," Ethan answered quickly. "We don't know whether this energy is being used for the dome shield, the neutralizers, or both. They may be backed up by external sources, and if that's the case then shutting down the plants won't make a dent. What we need is to get into the plants' systems to override commands, and worm our way in to a bigger network to see the nation's action plans."

Everyone waited for Gabby to speak, since she was a technopath who could create such an override program. She looked uncertain however, when she informed them, "Creating an override system will be much easier if I knew exactly what the energy is being used for, and more importantly, how it's being used."

They fell silent as each person in the conversation speculated about their circumstances. Specifically, they needed to find whether the plants were powering the dome around the country, or the neutralizing field within it. It could be both, but it was unlikely; it would be illogical for the President to place his trust solely on the power plants, no matter how well guarded they were.

Mia, who sat beside Warren, looked at the screen that showed the Elements Headquarters and noticed a large picture behind Layla. The wall behind her was a gallery that held many mementos of the Elements Team's adventures. The one picture she noticed was of the team in front of a large pyramid. A memory from two nights before, and a conversation she had from the White House event earlier, immediately came to mind. At once, everything clicked in to place.

Mia broke the silence by whispering, "Ancient Egypt's neutralizers."

Warren turned to her swiftly with a questioning glance, "What do you mean?"

When everyone looked at her questioningly, Mia started, "Former President Andrews was at the White House earlier, and he mentioned an unpublicized trip made by President Johnson to Egypt. He said it may have been a diplomatic meeting, or a military deal. What if he went there to visit the Pyramids?"

Everyone from the Elements team immediately knew what that meant. Vee stood up, surprised at that realization.

"Pyramid of Khufu's neutralizers!" she exclaimed, referring to a previous mission their team had in Egypt.

Mia nodded, "Exactly! Johnson could have met with someone there who knew about the neutralizing effect inside the pyramid. The technology may be ancient, but it can still be duplicated."

"He would need a technopath to do that," Gabby added.

"And he could have found one if he wanted to. I don't think anyone really buys his 'no superpowers' business," Will said tensely.

Zach piped in, "Wait a minute, are you talking about the same pyramid that took off your powers when that villain lured you there?" he asked Mandy, Tom, Vee, and Warren, who nodded in reply. "Did you ever get a chance to analyze that place afterwards?"

Warren answered him, "We found out that the pyramid walls emitted electro-magnetic waves that disrupted the mutated genes in our DNA which gives us powers. It's been monitored by the JL and the IAS ever since."

"He didn't have to go inside to find out what the place does," Tom added with a frown. "I'm sure a number of villains know about it, and would be willing to reveal information for the right price."

"Okay, so if that's the case, then does that mean the dome around the country is emitting these electro-magnetic waves just like the pyramid walls?" Zach asked curiously.

"No," Vee shook her head quickly. "We examined that force field dome and there was no electro-magnetic activity around it. It's similar to what Mia produces as force fields- it's an impermeable wall of light energy."

"Then how?" Will muttered to himself more than anyone else.

Gabby thumped her hands on the table and everyone turned to her, "It may be the power lines. Apart from the dome, they're the only constant around the country. The electricity overload around those plants may have carried the neutralizing electro-magnetic waves, and they were relayed across the power grid."

"It makes sense," Tom agreed, looking back at the power grid map from before. "Gabby, if you can reverse the polarity of those electro-magnetic waves, we may just deactivate the neutralizers around the country."

The rest of the team voiced out their agreement, and Gabby nodded comfortably.

"How long until you can create an override program?" Will asked Gabby.

"It won't take more than a day," she responded. "Creating the computer codes to hack in the system will be easy. It's reversing the polarity of the waves that will need careful work."

"Okay," Will nodded. "While we wait, we need to set up our own teams to go to those power plants. I assume we'll be going to the ones closest to us?"

Mia agreed, "Warren and I will take a plane to Florida, we'll grab some supers to join us from the base here and there."

Their mission was soon planned; Will was headed to New York, Vee and Tom will stay in Arizona, and Magenta, Zach and Mandy will go to Olympia. They weren't able to use teleporters but fortunately, flights around the country was still permitted.

When their conference ended, Layla remained at the Elements Headquarters with Ethan and Gabby, who started to work on the override program. She soon looked at the news from the West Coast, and saw the chaos caused by the recently expanded force field dome.

She walked towards the large floor to ceiling windows, and looked down at the land below. The headquarters was positioned in the sky above the coastline in Maine. Layla could see the lights from the city below, but it was slightly diffused by the force field dome around it.

Her phone rang and she quickly answered to hear a familiar voice.

"Hi Layla," Will greeted and Layla sat down on a bench overlooking the windows.

"Hey Will," she started, and Will noticed the sad tone in her voice. "So what do you think?"

Will sighed, "It's the best plan we have for now, I have a good feeling about it."

"I suppose, I'm just worried about the execution. Those plants are filled with troopers, and you're not invulnerable...None of you are."

"We'll make do with our weapons and our skills, and once we upload Gabby's program, we might have a better chance. Hopefully."

Layla sighed and rubbed her tired eyes, "I guess..."

Will steered the conversation, "How are things up there?"

"Ethan and Gabby are working on the override program," Layla informed him. "I've never seen them work so fast, I won't be surprised if they're done by the morning."

"That's good."

Layla continued in a serious tone, "You will try to be careful won't you Will?"

"Of course, am I not always careful?" he added in a teasing tone. Layla laughed.

"I love you," she softly replied.

Will immediately missed her even more at that moment, "I love you Layla. I miss you so much."

"We'll see each other soon," Layla said confidently. "This will all be over soon."

"Yeah," Will agreed. "Give Cam a kiss goodnight for me, you better grab some rest soon."

"Will do, I still have to stop by at Sky High later on though. Your parents are up there with Wonder Woman trying to work with the UN and INTERPOL. They're tracking down known suspects who captured a number of IAS and Justice League supers, and brought them out of the country before the dome appeared."

Will shook his head at the news, and soon said his goodbyes to Layla.

Layla took one more look at the seemingly peaceful city below and walked back to grab her things. She said her goodbyes to Ethan and Gabby, and informed them that she would be back early in the morning. She walked along the hallway and reached the transportation room. She entered the coordinates for Sky High and in a flash of blue light, she ended up inside her old high school.

**TBC**

* * *

_A/N:_

_To guest: Sorry that this story hasn't quite met your expectations, but since it just began, involving a lot of details was necessary. Some readers may feel that these details are unnecessary but I believe that each little part is just as important as the big action scenes. As for the main characters, sorry to disappoint but there won't be a main character. As I've put in the story summary, this is going to be a story about a team. Each character is just as important as the next, and I'm focusing on each person, or couples in most cases, to show how well they work as a team._

_I know there hasn't been much adventure in the story as of yet, but it's getting there. I'm setting up this story as mainly an action-adventure fic, with a lot of mystery solving. That being said, romance is really secondary to the plot. That's the reason why everyone is coupled already- they're older, more responsible, and have more things to worry about than romantic drama. So if any readers are expecting a lot of romance with drama, heartbreak, or fantasy or any such things, this won't be the story for you. I've already written the romantic drama story in The Mixed Tape, which was Warren and Mia's story._

_So I hope that clears things up. If anyone feels that the story isn't really going well or it might be on the boring side, feel free to let me know, so I can work on it and make reasonable changes. Otherwise, I will continue to write out the plot as I see fit. If anyone actually likes how this story is coming along, please let me know. At least this way I know I'm entertaining at least one reader._

_On another note, a wonderful graphic designer, MockingMellark, has created character images for this story. You can go to my profile to see the link to her profile (or search her author name) where further links to the images are located. They're really good so check them out and enjoy! _

_Hope you guys tune in for the next chapter!_


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